St Ives - Strolling about
by Tess 4 5
Summary: Barbara and Thomas are in St. Ives to ostensibly escape a posh party but in truth to have some time on their own. After having spent the night very active they deserve a little time to relax. Time to explore St. Ives. I try to keep this T-rated - it's broad daylight. (Sequel to the T- and M-rated series starting with Merry Christmas, previous episode was Refuge.)
1. Breakfast

**Author's notes:** I don't own any of the characters nor the original Inspector Lynley Mysteries – they belong to Elizabeth George and the BBC.

Reviews and comments are very welcome! But since I'm no native speaker please let me know if I did something terribly wrong (rating, grammar, spelling...). Thanks!

* * *

Barbara and Thomas are in St. Ives to ostensibly escape a posh party but in truth to have some time on their own. After having spent the night very active they deserve a little time to relax. Time to explore St. Ives. I try to keep this T-rated - it's broad daylight.

(Sequel to the T- and M-rated series starting with Merry Christmas, previous episode was Refuge.)

It needs a full english breakfast at first: beans, fried eggs, bacon, black pudding, mushrooms and buttered toast. A good way to start a hard day.

* * *

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* * *

On the next morning Barbara woke in an empty bed. She got up and hurried through the morning wash.

_I've taken a shower this night so that'll do._ she reassured herself.

The smell of fried bacon perfumed the house. Downstairs Thomas was cooking the breakfast and the washing machine was already on.

Barbara stopped at the wooden pillar marking the transition between living area and kitchenette and watched him handling with the dishes and cooking stuff while he constantly hummed some melody she didn't know. The cook inside Thomas was something new to her. They had always eaten takeaway or went to some bistro when out of London or during a case and at Howenstow he for sure had left the kitchen work to his mother or some personnel. More than making coffee had never been his as long as she could remember but he seemed to be contented.

"'morning, cutie cook!" she purred.

Thomas startled and turned. Barbara didn't leave the position leaning against that wooden pillar and smiled gently.

"How long have you been watching me?"

Barbara blushed. "Mmmh, it's been a while. What's for breakfast?"

"Nothing if I don't get payed with a kiss. Come over here." He grinned back at her, crossed his arms and leaned to the worktop.

Barbara stood a little while longer and drowned in his eyes.

_Oh, shit._ she thought. _I'm lost when he's looking at me that way.  
_

Then she went over lasciviously slow without disconnecting the eye contact. The last left inches he snatched her into his arms.

"'mornin', Baby." he whispered and gave her a gentle kiss.

"Well, I think now I deserve breakfast. Coffee?"

He pointed to the coffee pot. "Already made. And you'll get a full english. Without tomatoes, I've picked up once. How are your muscles, my insatiable love?" he grinned smugly.

At that Barbara tried to get free from his arms.

"You shut up!" she grumbled. She accused _him_ for being the one who always and everywhere and by the way her muscles were awful sore.

"That was my intention." Thomas laughed, turned them both and pressed her against the worktop. Then he lifted her onto it and kissed her deeply. Barbara curled her legs around him before she recognised that they were up to doing it again. Additionally the smell of burnt breakfast reached her nose so she broke the kiss.

"The eggs are burning."

Thomas cursed and rushed to the pan. While he fried another couple of eggs Barbara steadied herself on the ground again, got herself a coffee and set the table.

During the breakfast he told her that he had been to the next-door-shop to buy the breakfast while she still had been asleep. He hadn't wanted to wake her up because of their _nightly activities_, like he named it winking. Barbara blushed again.

"Could you do me a favour?!" he asked.

"Hm?"

"Next time please remind me of the connies. It seems I always get too distracted and not able to think straight when you seduce me."

"I don't seduce you!" Barbara said indignantly.

"Who was climbing the stairs lasciviously slow getting rid of her jumper?" Thomas grinned. "And who sent her bra down the handrail?!"

Barbara concentrated on picking up some mushrooms. "...just wanted to tease you a bit."

"And who came to the window without knickers?!"

"And who was naked?!" she glared at Thomas. "Can we agree on a draw?"

"And who walked in her lasciviously lazy way to walk up to me to get breakfast?! Can we agree on a quickie? I'm hot again thinking of you in nothing but a T-shirt." Thomas said huskily.

"Thomas!" Barbara blushed. She got up and put away her plate. "You exercise patience until I tell you otherwise!"

"Yes Ma'am!" Thomas answered obeyingly and came over to Barbara circling his arms around her torso from behind.

"I love you giving me orders." he whispered in her ear. It tickled her.

_He's doing it again._ Barbara thought almost helpless. "Stop it or we're not leaving the cottage until New Year's Eve."

"Hmmm. Not the worst idea." Thomas didn't stop breathing into her ear.

"Patience, Thomas! I want to see St. Ives." Barbara tried hard not to give in.

"You know what will happen when I have to wait." Thomas whispered.

Barbara thought of their arrival in the cottage and chuckled nervously but she wriggled herself out of his arms and started to clean the dishes.

With a deep sigh and a sad hangdog look Thomas helped her.

After they had cleared up the dishes they dressed for a walk.

* * *

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	2. Smeatons Pier

**Author's note:** Sorry for the delay. That funny thing called Real Life holds me in its tentacles and I hardly find some time to fill the line of my ideas with words. This will unfortunately happen more often in the near future but I'm sure there will be times when I have plenty of time to entertain you! ;-)

* * *

Strolling about St. Ives.

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* * *

It was now somewhat after one p.m. and all the snow they had seen falling in the night was gone. Unlike the day before the sun was shining brightly but it was still cold and windy. Barbara put her hair in a ponytail so they won't always fly into her face. They went back to the Wharf Road at the harbour and then wandered along The Wharf to the Smeatons Pier where they stopped a while cuddling and watching the harbour and the open sea on the other side.

Thomas told her of times in his youth when he had been forced by his father to work for a fisherman near Nanrunnel to "teach him something about hard working life". Thomas had been fifteen and during the week he had stayed at the fisherman's shed next to his house to "learn to think and care for himself" like his father had said. For the weekends he had been free to come back home or to stay there. He mostly had stayed there, just to be away from his father. A difficult relationship that was between them at those teenage days.

"And I had to work _really_ hard. For seven weeks I was ruled by the tide: Got up in the middle of the night, slept whenever there was an opportunity, barely ate."

Thomas sighed. "Nobody cooked for me and nobody washed my things. My father had made that arrangement with the fisherman."

"You poor boy." Barbara mocked. She helped her mother's household since the age of ten.

He rolled his eyes. If the fisherman's wife wouldn't have had mercy he supposed that he had starved to death in that time.

"I had to coil ropes, mend fishing nets and lobster pots, had to clean them and pile them up. And I literally was up to the elbows in fish."

With a slight sigh of disgust Thomas recalled how he had to rearrange the haul, stack the boxes and worst of all gill fish for the harbour sale.

"I thought that I would never again touch any seafood. And guess what - the next year I returned. My father didn't want to buy me that Vespa I _had_ to have, and he also denied me the money for it so I had to make money by myself." Thomas grinned.

"A Vespa?!" Barbara asked disbelievingly.

Thomas wrapped his arms tighter around her and chuckled. "I was a bad boy..."

"...no doubt!"

"...with a rocker's leather jacket and heavy boots. But I've taken it into my head that I had to _have_ that Vespa 150 GS, 1956 model. A dealer offered that special item with the option to restrict the engine but in the end I couldn't afford it."

"Say..."

"Yes, he'd charged an imm... You're not takin' me serious, do you." Thomas grumbled playfully.

"Yes, I do." Barbara had to chuckle. "I see that you fancied an old expensive vehicle - like nowadays - but I can't image you wearing denim and leather, Mr. Fine Cloth." She poked him in the chest with her finger.

"I was the terror boy of Nanrunnel!" Thomas tried to hold back his laughter.

"Oh, _that_ I can imagine!"

"That village derived great benefit from my absence when I was working in that harbour." Thomas winked and kissed Barbara.

"Just harbour work? You didn't make it for deep water?"

"No, when my father and I had one of our argues about that holiday job beforehand we compromised I won't have to go to sea." Thomas chuckled when he told Barbara that he actually wasn't really fond of bob up and down in a cockleshell on the huge waves of open water.

"Neither am I." Barbara mumbled.

"I remember."

* * *

It came up for discussion when Barbara once had been to Essex in that case her former neighbour had been involved and she herself had been demoted afterwards.

"Now, can we please change the subject?" she asked eventually. "It wasn't my best acting."

"Well, you've saved two lifes and one of those was mine. I may say that wasn't the _worst_ acting."

Thomas pulled Barbara into his arms and gave her a deep kiss.

Releasing her lips he asked "Now, did _you_ work during your holidays?" He had his arms wrapped around her waist and kept on holding her close to him.

"You're joking." Barbara shook her head. "You rich man's son wouldn't believe it, but I've had a job throughout the year and not just since I was fifteen."

She told him of her countless jobs among daily school duties.

"I watched the neighbour's children, I delivered advertising brochures, gave extra lessons for younger school mates, went to the shop for an old lady - those teenager jobs I had. And becoming older I also worked as a cleaner or in a fish'n'chip shop. And it was during the year, not just on holiday."

For a while she dwelled on her own thoughts looking past his face onto the sea.

"And I didn't want to buy me an old scooter, I've saved every penny for my education."

Thomas cursed himself inwardly. _She's true._ he thought._ I complain about my first world problems and totally forget her working class origin._

Barbara gave a laugh. "But it became _really_ tough when I was a probationary constable. You might not have noticed it by yourself but they really underpay us, especially in the beginning. And I've had too less time to have a proper sideline. I nearly jacked it all in."

"I'm glad you didn't. Otherwise I wouldn't have met you. And _that_ would be a pity!" They smiled at each other.

_Oh, I adore that silver hair and his greying temples. _Barbara thought. The wind ruffled through his dark hair. And _I love how he's wearing it now. Not that short anymore. More to hold onto._

* * *

"You've come that far." Thomas stated.

"If I'm not constantly demoted."

"Naah, it was a single incident."

"No, it was the second _single incident_." Barbara chuckled. "Two weeks after my first promotion I had been demoted 'cause they had confused names."

"They what?" Thomas couldn't believe it.

"The stupid pen-pushers had confused names. It had to be Parvati Evans." Barbara shook her head. "I was hit in the face by that promotion because it wasn't my turn at all, three years in the force." She laughed and told him about that monetary apology they gave her for it.

"It was a pretty penny and came in very useful."

"It was the least they could do." Thomas got excited about that matter.

"You see, I always bring evil upon myself." Barbara sighed.

"Am I evil?" Thomas asked leering.

"Didn't I recently hear you swagger that you're a bad boy?!"

Thomas now grabbed her bum and pulled her hips firmly against his.

Barbara reddened. "Stop that, Thomas!"

"Why should I? You're mine. I want to express that!"

After another deep and passionate kiss they decided that the wind was blowing too freezy and the sea spray had become too heavy so they left the stormy pier.

* * *

.

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**Author's second note:** As cold as it is outside they will need something warm when they return to their refuge. I'm _so_ looking forward to something that is already written but its time has not yet come...

**Author giggles.**


	3. Dog's Beach

**Author's note:** December sunshine in St. Ives...

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.

* * *

Barbara thought about those last words, that she was _his_.

___How can he dare?! I'm not _his___, I'm an independent person. _revoltet one side.

_I'm his and lost. And by the way, he's mine. _conceded the other side with a little butterfly uproar in her belly.

But the revolting side won. "I am not _yours_, Sir!"

Thomas looked slightly amused. "Right, you're not mine, _Havers_."

He squeezed her shoulder. "But _you_ are, Barbara."

"I am _not_!" she insisted.

Thomas stopped walking and turned to her. "Barbara, you are my girl, my baby, my sweetie. I love you. That's why you're mine."

Barbara was touched but still looked sceptical. Thomas nearly whispered now.

"You're mine, like I am yours. With my head, with my heart _and_! ...with my hips."

Now Barbara couldn't decide if she would cry, melt or chuckle. This was the cutest declaration of love she ever heard.

"Oh, and with that lovebite you've left on my neck." Thomas added.

So, Barbara chuckled. "I've _had_ to mark you as being already taken."

"...see?" Thomas lowered his head to kiss her gently.

_I'm his. _Barbara gave in._  
_

"What have I told you lately about patience, Thomas?!" she smiled at him.

* * *

They went on northwards into the direction of the Saint Ives Museum. But instead of going in - they decided to keep that in mind for a not so lovely, sunny day - they went down the cliff stairs to one of the beaches. It was very tiny and sheltered from the wind. Some dog owners strolled their dogs and immediately Thomas was distracted.

"When I retire I'll get me a dog." he raved. "Or two."

"Or three. Or four." Barbara finished.

"You got me!" he grinned.

Barbara was walking one stony step above Thomas and looked three feet down on him. They both turned into the direction of the sun and the water and watched the dogs chasing each other. Barbara leant her knees against Thomas' shoulders to keep physical contact. Thomas stroke her calf behind his back.

After a while he told her he had to walk the beach and so he climbed over the big stones down to the sand. While Barbara sat down in the sun he strolled around. She watched him and knew he would play with at least one of the dogs in a few minutes.

An old lady feebly climbed down the stairs followed by a very young Labrador dancing around her, obviously delirious with joy to go to the beach. She sat down on one of the big seating steps near the stairs and repeatingly threw a ball that the pup retrieved.

When the ball came to a halt in front of Thomas' feet the pup finally found an equal partner and the old lady could read her newspaper in peace.

* * *

For the first time in those three days in Cornwall Barbara wanted to smoke. She realised that she had left her cigarettes at Howenstow and hadn't felt the urge to smoke in all that time there anyway, not even at that great dinner when there were some smokers around.

_Well, so be it._ she thought and giggled to herself. _Stop smoking, start shagging._

Her mobile rang. Without checking the caller ID she answered. "Havers."

_"Hey, Barb, where're you rovin' 'bout?! I've tried to get you out to the Savoy but you seem to be not at home?!"_

"Winnie!" _He heard my thoughts, that daft bloke. _Barbara laughed. "Right, errr... I'm not at home for some days."

_"Where exactly are you? Don't say you've followed him to his lordly country estate!"_

"What?!" Barbara clearly understood his insinuation.

_"Are you at Howenstow, you little hussy?!"_ Winston laughed.

"Oh, shut up!"

_"So you are?!"_

"No, I'm not, Winston!" _Truth._ she told herself. _It's St. Ives._

_"So where are you? I thought to get some drinks with you."_

"I'm not in London right now. I'm away with friends." This was no real lie but neither the truth. "And as a reward for your impertinent question I won't tell you where I am. I'll be back soon enough and hopefully recovered from your everlasting impertinence so I can face another hard year next to your desk!"

They bantered along, talking about the actual weather in London and _"where Barbara was"_.

Eventually Thomas saw her speaking on the phone and shouted across the beach.

"Who is it?"

Barbara shook her head and laid a finger on her lips to keep Thomas silent.

Winston had heard Thomas.

_"Wasn't that his Lordship?!"_ he asked.

"I don't know what you've heard." Barbara squirmed herself out of the truth. "There are _some_ people around."

Even if Winston couldn't see her she reddened. He always had a way to know exactly what was up. And in fact he knew his guv's voice.

Ignoring her effort to keep him silent Thomas came by and asked again who that was she was talking to. That sweet young Labrador still was on his side demanding to continue their ball game.

Barbara rolled her eyes, glared at him and shook her head.

_"Don't gimme that crap, Barb! This _is_ Lynley."_

"No." So, this was the first lie.

_"I call him from landline to check out if the background sounds are equal. That okay with you?"_

Barbara could literally _feel_ his nasty smirk.

"Say, Winnie, don't you have some work to do?" Barbara laughed nervously.

_"All finished. That's why I wanted a pint with you."_

They went on talking about how they both had spent Christmas. Barbara just told him about "a nice dinner with friends and a lovely time away from work and the dusty world of London". She had the feeling that he wasn't fully buying it. After an exchange about the weather forecast they ended the call.

"I'll be back next year, Winnie."

_"And convey my greetings to your Lordship, Barb!"_ were Winston's last words before he hung up.

"Oh, you bloody..." Barbara cursed disconnecting the line. Then she flashed angrily at Thomas who was still standing in front of her.

* * *

"Thomas, couldn't you at least _try_ to understand the simple gesture of _Shut up!_ when it's needed? This was Nkata, and he _exactly_ understood where I am and with whom I am." She glared at him again.

"Oh." said Thomas.

"Yes, oh. And I've denied it. But I hate to lie to him. I already hate to hide us anyway."

Barbara nearly cried. Winston Nkata was the best colleague she ever head. Well, that is to say apart from Thomas. Winnie always takes everything lightly, he joked and smiled, did his job and took her out for a pint or a walk afterwards.

"It will be very hard with Winnie digging all the time, because he _always_ poked fun on me."

"About what?" Thomas asked.

"About me and you." Barbara stuffed her hands into the pockets of her coat and looked grimly across the water.

Winston mostly sat at a desk near Barbara and so he could tell from her ever blushing face and her general behaviour concerning him that she felt something for Lynley. And he always teased her about it though he never seemed to absolutely take it serious. Not that serious as the crush on Lynley _in fact_ had been and definitely not that serious as their relationship now had developed.

Thomas handed the ball back to the old lady and they thanked each other for playing with the dog. Then he climbed the seating steps and sat down next to Barbara.

"He's a clever boy." he said. "And I think he will be the first to be told of our news."

He put an arm around Barbara's shoulders and she huddled close to him.

"Do you mind if we involve him from the beginning?" Thomas suggested. "He's our closest colleague and we're working side by side. I think it'll only be fair to tell him soon."

"Mhm!" Barbara nodded. Then she giggled. "Or we could let him find it out on his own. Some scene that'll abash him."

"Such as I yank you aside and we filthily snog?"

Barbara blushed, grinned and gave him a dig with her elbow. "Mustn't be so intense, yah, but somethin' like that."

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	4. Narrow streets

**Author's note:** It's getting colder so it's time to get back to the cottage. Oh, and something to eat would be great.

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* * *

The sun now wasn't beaming enough anymore to give some warmth so they stood up and left the dog's beach. Most of the other people already had left. Hand in hand Thomas and Barbara went through the narrow streets where the sun didn't reach anymore. In the shadows it was awful cold and the wind blew icily around every corner. Here and there they stopped in front of a shop and they bought some selection of handmade fudge.

"I love butter fudge!" Barbara mumbled around a mouthful of it.

"Will you ever stop talking with your mouthful?" he teased her.

"Not when it comes to private matters. Only when it's absolutely necessary. Like dinner with Lords, you know. Oh, wait..." she ironically added.

Thomas raised an eyebrow and shook his head. He was about to repeat something but then spotted a shop window.

"Look!" Thomas pointed to a souvenir shop. "We go in there."

Inside the shop you could find everything a tourist might want: wooden maritime signboards, handmade rope things, ship models, oil paintings of the sea, miscellaneous shells, postcards, towels and...

"Bath salts!" Thomas said joyful. "For that bath I've planned to be having with you."

He chose a variety of little flasks to have the choice later on.

Barbara blushed but smiled all the same. She herself was looking forward to that bath. In the oversized stand-alone bathtub they both would have plenty of space. She imagined sitting there, with a glass of champagne in her hand, the beautiful view of naked Thomas in her eye, surrounded by some candles...

_Candles!_

She searched for candles. She found that sort of shops really annoying and overexpensice but a proper Tesco* was out of reach. _To hell with those anchor, rope and lifebelt designs. They'll make romantic illumination anyway. And we definitely won't look at the candles.  
_

She put some candles on the counter and smiled at Thomas who was paying. That was the reason she didn't care about the prices of the candles.

He smiled back. _Oh, it's going to be very romantic tonight._ he thought.

Thomas secretly also bought something small. He put it in the bag without Barbara noticing it.

"Thank you, Sir. Enjoy your evening." the girl behind the counter wished them somewhat automatically when they were leaving the shop.

_Oh, _that_ we will! _Both knew where that bath very likely would lead them to._  
_

* * *

It was now quite dark and Barbara was reminded of having indeed wintertime. There were no more people on the streets but a few. It seemed that Barbara and Thomas were the only ones taking their own sweet time.

Barbara stuffed her hands back into the pockets of her coat. The piercing cold went up her legs.

"It's going to be romantic, that bath." Thomas said smiling at her. "With candle light and champagne... You know what I've found? Behind a facing in the bathroom there is a fireside. We can relax in the tub and listen to a crackling fire."

"Sounds warm."

"Sounds hot." Thomas turned Barbara around and moved her gently against a nearby wall. "I'm so looking forward to it." he whispered onto her lips.

"...same here..." Barbara mumbled between kisses. She had her eyes closed and put her hands on his hips.

When she opened her lips his tongue explored her mouth and played with hers very slow and gentle.

They had to come up for air at some point.

"Wha' did I say 'bout patience, Tom?" Barbara breathed and made no move to stop their kissing.

"...forgot." he whispered and touched her lips with his again.

"'evening!" a loud voice startled them but Thomas just raised his head into the direction of the passing man and politely replied "Good evening, Sir."

Grinning he returned to Barbara's lips. "Now, where was I?"

"You were talking about a hot evening, but my feet are getting cold. I'm hungry and..."

Thomas interrupted her with a kiss.

"...and you're way too impatient." she continued.

He kissed her again.

"...please!" Barbara croaked. "When you're not stopping this _immediately_, I freeze on the wall and starve to death."

Thomas chuckled but let her go. He took her hand and twirled her around.

"...love ya!" he laughed. "Fish'n'chips?"

"Sounds extremely good."

* * *

Around the next corner they found a takeaway shop and ordered their dinner. Huddled to one another they waited in front of the desk.

Then eating silently they went on into the direction of the cottage.

With the sun set and the darkness of the evening all warmth of the day was gone now. Their fingers went cold eating the food. Thomas suggested to warm up in the pub but Barbara just wanted to go home to the cottage and take a long hot bath.

"Patience!" Thomas said chuckling when he consumed the last bites of his dinner.

He burrowed in his pocket.

"Look what I've found on the beach." Thomas presented her a heartshaped stone as big as a two pound coin.

"Oh, that's lovely." Barbara mumbled around her last mouthful of chips.

Thomas stopped and because she still had the paper wrappings of her food in both hands he put the stone in her coat pocket.

"Keep it safe." he smiled. "It's a little reminder. If back in London and you feel like missing me you just have to hold it."

"Oh, Thomas..." Barbara smiled back deeply stirred and defenceless with both hands still busy with the paper, so she just lifted her lips to his when he put his hands on her waist and kissed her again.

_He is so cute._ she thought dreamily. _What have I done to be blessed with him?_

* * *

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**Author's notes:** Keep your eyes open, the next might be another seperately published M-rated episode.

* * *

*Tesco - my favourite supermarket chain in the UK. Love it! I also love Waitrose, Sainsbury's, Asda, Morrsions, Somerfield and the coop around the corner. ;-)


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